Categories: just-life
Date: 01 February 2005 20:07:36
A grand day this week, for one of my friends has been granted the rank of Cynic.... She has joined myself and our jolly band of Cynics in our world-view of how things are. Now don't get me wrong, we are not like the Cynics of ancient Greece.
Whereas they believed that living virtuously is both necessary and sufficient for attaining happiness, we belive in Murphy's Law, that if it can go wrong, it will;
[a side note, looking up 'Murphy's Law' in my little dictionary it mearly says 'Sod's Law' but try to look up 'Sod's Law' and it's not there...... how annoying!!! ;)]
Of course, the Cynics of ancient Greece had nothing to do with how the word is used today, but rather they identify living virtuously with living according to nature, and in living this way the oppose to living conventually. Antisthenes (founder c. 445-365 BCE, later became a follower of Socrates) noted that fancy statues are extremely expensive, even though they serve no useful purpose, whereas necessities, such as flour are cheap.
One of my favourite of the Cynics is Diogenes (the Cynic) mainly because some of the stories told about him and his wit. It is reported that Alexander the Great once visited him and asked him if there was anything that Alexander could do for him. Diogenes, who was sunbathing at the time, asked Alexander, the most powerful man in the world, if he could move so he would stop bloking the sun. (of course, Alexander the Great would have been mearly Alexander when he was around Greece.... didn't become Great till after he'd conquer the known world.. and then died)
But as they say, this is all history (my joke there..... sorry)and we are about the present!!!
So today's Cynics, well, we do believe in what it says in the dictionary; there is little good in anything. Of course, all being different people we all have different levels of cynicism, and we are all more cynical about different things. However, just to be difficult, I happen to be a very optimistic cynic.
Now this is, and I admit it, a contradiction in terms but it's true. I really do just have this habbit of beliving that things will turn out alright in the end. Just not for me. Which is where the cynical part comes in.
Actually.... I feel quite proud about that fact.... there can not be many people who can happilly say that they are both optimistic and cynical as well...... I would like to add bitter and twisted, but I'm not bitter (though I like to drink it) so I shall have to stick to the twisted part!!!
And now for something completely different.......... well..... not really!!!!
What I was going to do was go back to my book idea....... now I've thought of it I really quite like the idea. I mean, like Sarah said, Wainwright did some lovely books (if you like hiking you should read them) and I've always wanted to be able to draw the hills as he does.... I try but they just don't come out...... (yes, I know, practice makes prefect.......)
Of course, thinking about it, I do wonder which hikes to put in....... there are a couple lovely routes around Tryfan that are just musts.......
This is something that I must give serious thought to......... Mmmmmmm, cookies...... :)